The National Interest: Blog: Leslie Gelb: What Should Be The Purpose of American Power?

Posted on August 24, 2015 by Rik Schneider

Russian-Chinese Alliance?

Russian-Chinese Alliance?


The National Interest: Blog: Lesley Gelb: What Should Be The Purpose of American Power?

I believe Les Gelb has the right attitude here and he’s someone who knows about American Power being the President of the Council of Foreign Relations. American Power, it depends on how you define it. I find think of most Americans when they think of American Power think of the U.S. Armed Forces and the broader National Security State. Like the Central Intelligence Agency, to use as an example. But our entire National Security Council is part of American Power. Which includes the State Department and Department of Homeland Security, as well as our Treasury Department.

See American Power, is our Armed Forces, and the National Security State, but it is also our economy. The stronger our economy is, the better our military can be. The more effective our economic sanctions against terrorist states can be. The main reason we won the Cold War against Russia, is because our economic strength. Their Marxist system simply failed their country. And their people had enough and you saw all of those non-ethnic Russian Soviet Republics break up and form their own countries. America, probably had a stronger military than Russia during the Cold War. But our economy and economic system was the main weapon there.

Now the purpose of American Power again using the NSC and economy to make America as strong as it can be. So we never have to worry about our own security. At least in the sense that someone could invade us, or wipe out a section of our country, or even attack us from the air. Which is where we’ve always have been at least since Pearl Harbor. The purpose of American Power is not to rule the world, or even police the world. At least by ourself, but to use our power to more than adequately defend us when needed. And to advance our interests and values that a lot of the world already shares.

I agree with Les Gelb, that America is and should be the strongest leader in the world. Simply because we are and there isn’t another democratic developed nation in the world that is capable of replacing us, or even coming close. But being the strongest leader in the world and the most powerful country economically and everything else, is different from being the leader of the world. And having to take all the risks and pay all the price when some crisis develops around the world. While everyone else debates what America should be doing at the debating society known as the United Nations. While they don’t do anything themselves.

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Public Resource: CBS News Longines Chronoscope: U.S. Senator Richard Russell in 1952

Posted on August 23, 2015 by kireschneider
Bradford Hewitt & Paul Martin

Bradford Hewitt & Paul Martin

The New Democrat 

Senator Richard Russell, was one of the leading Dixiecrats in Congress for almost forty-years. He was the Chairman of Southern Caucus in Congress and led the opposition to every civil rights bill in Congress in the 1950s and 1960s. To be honest with you, as a Liberal Democrat, I’m glad he would a Republican today and that he is a big reason why Senate cloture rule was changed in 1975. So that instead of needing 67 votes to end debate, now the Senate needed 60. Because Senator Russell, was in Congress at the height of the civil rights battles in the 1950s and 60s. And those laws could have been passed faster without Russell and the Dixiecrats in Congress.

What is a Dixiecrat? They’re almost gone and out of the Democratic Party now if not gone all together. But today Dixiecrats are Southern right-wing Republicans. Both conservative libertarian, like with Representative Walter Jones from North Carolina and a whole host of so-called Religious-Conservatives in Congress, in the House and Senate. Senator Jeff Sessions, from Alabama, would be an example of a Religious-Conservative Republican in Congress. But from the end of the American Civil War, if not farther back, Dixiecrats were right-wing Democrats. Who believed in states rights and were strong Federalists, as am I. But they believed federalism gave the states the right to deny their residents access based on race. I do not.

In 1952, when this interview was done, the civil rights movement was really just under way. Even though it had already won a big battle in the 1940s with President Harry Truman desegregating the U.S. Armed Forces. Senator Russell, ran for president in 1952 and was a Dixiecrat. And a true Federalist and part of his federalism was that the states could handle their own domestic issues entirely. And even force their residents to be separated by race and allow for business owners to deny people access to their business based on race. And force African-Americans to sit in the back of the bus and go to rotten schools and you can go down the line. So the Dick Russell you see in 1952, is the same Dick Russell that fought against the 1964 Civil Rights Act and 1965 Voting Rights Act. And other civil rights laws and help for poor people of all races from the Federal Government.

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Public Domain Footage: Columbia University (1964)

Posted on August 22, 2015 by Derik Schneider

Liberal Democrat

Source:Public Domain Footage– U.S. Senate candidate Robert F. Kennedy, speaking at Columba University in 1964.

Source:The New Democrat

“Robert F. Kennedy speech at Columbia University 1964 – RFK speaking”

From Public Domain Footage

Robert F. Kennedy, running for U.S. Senate in 1964 and not to replace one of his brothers in Massachusetts, but to run for Senate in New York. A great opportunity for Bobby Kennedy as well in 1964, because Senator Ken Keating, from New York wasn’t very popular in New York. President Lyndon Johnson, was going to win New York in a landslide. And here is where Bobby Kennedy, had an opportunity to jump on Lyndon’s coattails and take a seat in the U.S. Senate in the following Congress.

I believe Kennedy, answered the carpetbagger question very well. Of course with his Irish-Boston accent, he didn’t sound very New York. Either from New York City, or upstate like in Buffalo, or some place. But he grew up in New York City and spent most of his professional career in Washington and had a home in New York.

This is not like Hillary Clinton, who grew up in Chicago and spent a lot of her professional career in Arkansas with her husband and then a New York Senate seat opens up in 2000 and she decides she’s going to be the next U.S. Senator from New York. A state where she didn’t have any roots in going in.

I think Bobby Kennedy, answered the presidential question very well to. You can’t run for both President and U.S. Senate at the same time. At least in most states and that would be borderline impossible to do so before you’re actually in the Senate.

Kennedy, was clearly a Senate candidate in 1964 for New York. So that was the seat and race he was focused on. And again in 1964, LBJ looked like he would probably run for reelection in 1968 and perhaps even be popular. RFK and LBJ, were both Democrats. So as RFK said, 1972 eight years after 1964 would’ve been the earliest that he could run for president.

Bobby Kennedy’s politics, might have changed a bit from 1964 to 1967-68. But that had to do with the Vietnam War and growing poverty and racial division in America in the late 1960s.

But in 1964, I believe RFK was still an establishment Center-Left Progressive Democrat like his brother Jack. And you could argue that he moved left from that by 1967. But in 1964 he was running for U.S. Senate essentially to continue the vision and goals of President Kennedy. Expanding freedom and opportunity to all Americans and dealing with civil rights, equal rights and equality of opportunity for the whole country.

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Late Night with Seth Myers: David Brock & Jerry Seinfeld: Jerry Seinfeld is Tired of Political Correctness

Posted on August 22, 2015 by Ederik Schneider

What's The Deal With Political Correctness?

What’s The Deal With Political Correctness?


Late Night with Seth Myers: David Brock & Jerry Seinfeld: Jerry Seinfeld is Tired of Political Correctness

“There’s this creepy political correctness thing going on right now.” To paraphrase Jerry Seinfeld and perhaps my version sounds better. But I couldn’t agree more. I could try I guess, if only I had so much time to waste. Who are these judges of what’s appropriate and inappropriate language and humor in America anyway and why are they all on the Far-Left? America, is not Sweden, obviously our weather is a lot better and not all our women are blonde. We are a Constitutional Federal Republic in the form of a liberal democracy. We have a guaranteed constitutional liberal right to free speech. If we didn’t, maybe we would be Sweden.

And the problem is, we either have this New York, or San Francisco, or Seattle centric faction of Americans, who don’t believe in free speech. Because free speech means people can essentially say whatever the hell they want. Even if someone else disagrees, or disapproves. And they are also the biggest tight asses, that you’ll ever see. And no I’m not talking about beautiful sexy curvy women. I’m talking about a tight ass, whose foot is far up their ass and think so highly of them self that they can’t take a joke. Either about them self, because they see them self as perfect, as well as the people they associate with in their local coffee-house wearing their berets reading and listening to poetry.

People who can’t take jokes, should not listen to comedy, or read comedy. Because comedians get paid to make people laugh and tell jokes. I know, that sounds crazy. Now you’re thinking I’m going to suggest that actors who get paid to act and pitchers get who paid to pitch. I know it’s a crazy world, but part of making people laugh is making fun of people who have weakness’. Not to make those people look bad and hurt their feelings, but to show sides of people where they can use some self-improvement. And again if you can’t take a joke, maybe America is not the right place for you. And maybe you would be better off in a country where everybody thinks and talks the way you do.

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G. Edward Griffin: More Deadly Than War

Posted on August 22, 2015 by Rik Schneider
G. Edward Griffin

G. Edward Griffin

Source:The New Democrat 

Communists, at least self-described Communists have never had any real power in America. The only real movement they had in America that was able to gain any momentum, popularity and gain attention, was the Black Panther and Black Power movement of the 1960s. That was made up of more than African-Americans, but other Americans as well. The New-Left of the 1960s, had both a social democratic and Communist movement in it. But Socialists, at best today whether they self-describe themselves that way, or not, are at best 15-20% of the population. Marxist-Communists, again self-described, or not, are not even ten-percent in America.

When you look at third-parties in America, there have only been two third-parties that have gained any prominence and traction in the last twenty-years or so. The Libertarian Party, that has a large growing movement in and outside of the Republican Party. And the social democratic Green Party, that has a growing movement in and outside of the Democratic Party. The Bernie Sanders movement, is essentially the Green Party right now ideologically. And the title of this film is The Communist Revolution in America and it came out in 1969. And yet who are these Communist revolutionaries who are going to put this revolution together.

What this film really looks like to me, is a right-wing propaganda film, or at least a right-wing perspective and the opposition to the civil rights movement of the 1960s. That, “civil rights freedom fighters who non-violently for the most part fought for equal rights for African and other Americans in the 1960s, really weren’t freedom fighters at all. They were really Russian agents working for the Communist Party in Russia to spread communism in America.” This looks like a lot of, right-wing garbage to put it mildly. Anglo-Saxon mostly Americans who in 1969 of course were still angry about losing all of those civil rights battles of the 1960s.

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CBS News: 60 Minutes: Lesley Stahl Interviews Jimmy Carter: The White House Diary

Posted on August 22, 2015 by Erik Schneider

Lesley Stahl

Source:CBS News– 60 Minutes correspondent Lesley Stahl.

Source:The New Democrat

“Lesley Stahl speaks to the former president about his new book, “White House Diary,” in which he admits mistakes and blames Ted Kennedy for delaying comprehensive health care.”

From CBS News

I mentioned this last week, but President Jimmy Carter was not a failed president and I laid out why I believe that. And of course we have the benefit of history now. And the economy was in bad shape when he left and the Soviet Union seemed to be stronger, even though again from the benefit of history their economy was failing with all of their bread lines, unemployment, poverty, shortages, that took them at least twenty years to over. So of course the Soviet Union wasn’t stronger when President Carter left office. Their military was just doing more because they thought America was weak.

There are a couple of reasons why Jimmy Carter wasn’t a great president. One of them his fault and the other partly his fault. His relationship with the two Democratic Congress’s that he had, especially with Senator Ted Kennedy, but Speaker of the House Tip O’Neil and Senate Leader Robert Byrd and many other examples. President Carter, actually had a better relationship with Senate Minority Leader Howard Baker (the ranking Republican in Congress during the Carter years) then he probably had with any Democratic leader in Congress. Including Southern Democrats who he probably had things in common with.

The other issue being all the problems that he had to deal with as president. Not his fault for the most part that they happened. Especially with the economy, but where he comes up short from my perspective at least was his failure to deal with them and gain traction and success in those areas. President Obama, inherited a worst economy then either President Carter, or President Reagan and yet the economy started moving again fairly quickly under his administration. And started creating jobs early in his second year.

I think what you see in the Carter White House diary, is what Americans back then and today really like and respect about the man. That Jimmy Carter, is a person and individual before he’s a politician.
He’s the politician that Americans say they want. Above board, free-thinker, free speaker, above politics, not all the time, but a lot of the time, does and says what he believes and then deals with the consequences. Including about how he feels with people he has to work with. As you see in his White House diary.

The problem with Americans though and perhaps where Carter’s personality hurt him, is that is just what Americans say they want. They actually prefer bullshit artists who tell them what they want to hear, generally, then free thinkers.

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Liberty Pen: John Stossel: Starr Parker, ‘The Lie of The Left’

Posted on August 21, 2015 by Ederik Schneider
Starr Parker

Starr Parker

Source:The New Democrat 

“The Lie of The Left”, not sure which Left Starr Parker is referring to. Because it is a very large political faction of people in America. Just look at the Democratic Party. Where you have Center-Left Liberals such as myself and then you have Progressives, who are a bit left of me, but still in the mainstream of American politics. But then you have Bernie Sanders Democratic Socialists, who are very way left and look more like the Green Party, or Democratic Socialist Party, than they do the Democratic Party. So is Starr Parker, saying everyone on the Left lies?

Of course racism, stills plays a factor in America and Americans are denied access as a result. It’s not the only reason for poverty in America and perhaps not much of a reason at all. But if you get yourself an education and you apply yourself and show perspective employers that hiring you can would benefit the organization, you can overcome racism. It also helps to have access to good lawyers when you are denied a position because of your race. So the person who victimized you won’t want to do that again and pay a price for what they did to you.

I agree with Starr Parker about the welfare system. Which is why it was reformed in 1996, but we need to go further with that. But this idea that The Left, again as if there’s one Left, as if there was one Right, especially when you have John Stossel talking to Starr Parker, believe that if you’re born Black, or Brown, or whatever it might be that you’re automatically going to have to live in poverty in America, especially with people compared with lighter complexions, is stupid. The Far-Left, I’m sure believes that. Black Lives Matter, would be an example of that.

Another thing, I’m not sure what world Starr Parker is living in and I’m glad she was able to get herself off of Welfare. But this idea that racism has nothing to do with people either being denied access, or living in poverty is foolish. 12-100 Americans, are African-American. 70-100 Americans are Caucasian, depending on how you define Hispanics. Race, is obviously a factor in this country, so just on numbers alone African-Americans are more likely to be exposed to racism than Caucasians. Again not sure what world Starr Parker is living in. And perhaps she lives somewhere in America where people are never judged by their complexion, or their race. Sounds like paradise and a place that I would like to visit myself.

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James Miller Center: President Jimmy Carter: University of Notre Dame 1977 Commencement

Posted on August 21, 2015 by Erik Schneider
Liberal Democrat

Liberal Democrat

Source:The New Democrat 

This speech by President Carter in 1977 was not only huge, but I think the best speech he’s ever given. And perhaps the best speech that any president has ever given when it comes to human rights and freedom. Making human rights an official part of American foreign policy and that the goal of the Carter Administration would be to promote human rights around the world. And that foreign aid would be one of those tools to do that. Which means to me at least that he wanted a foreign policy that would stop backing and subsidizing unilateralist authoritarian dictators.

This is really important, because the Soviet Union was making a big play to promote communism and their brand of authoritarianism around the world. They wanted to do that in Ethiopia, which already had an authoritarian government and they invaded Afghanistan that had a moderate monarchy. And while Russia is promoting their idea of authoritarianism around the world, here you have the leader of the free world, the leader of the most powerful and important liberal democracy in the world in Jimmy Carter, coming back and saying that human rights is what we should be talking about and what the world needs.

I would’ve liked to of seen more of this in his President Carter’s foreign policy and make foreign aid a tool in promoting human rights, freedom and economic development in developing countries. And saying that the United States is no longer going to subsidize dictators and other authoritarians. And say if you want our assistance that assistance is going towards the benefit of your country. You’re not going have a Marxist economy and you’re free up your own people to be able to take control of their own lives. And no longer arrest people and hold them without trial. Or arrest people simply for speaking out against the government.

That foreign aid, has to be used for things like infrastructure, health care, education, economic development, foreign trade. And not be used simply to keep an authoritarian regime that doesn’t know how to manage a command and control Marxist economy in power. Because America wouldn’t like the regime that replaced the current regime that is in power. And where President Carter comes up short here, even though he had a lot of foreign policy accomplishments as I laid out last week, is that he kept in place the United States policy of subsidizing so-called moderate dictators in order to keep worst regimes from coming to power. Like with the Shah of Iran, which came back to bite him and America, well in the ass to be direct about it in 1979.

President George W. Bush’s administration, made democracy the goal in their second term for the developing world and countries that live under dictatorships. I’m a Democrat and obviously I believe in democracy, but democracy by itself shouldn’t be the end goal. Authoritarians, come to power through democracy all the time. The Nazis in Germany in the 1930s, the best example of this. What should be the goal here is human rights and freedom for countries that don’t have those things. And where America can help here is by promoting freedom and human rights. You don’t do that by invading and occupying countries simply because you don’t like the current government. But you can do that through foreign aid and trade. And saying we’ll help you if that help benefits the people and doesn’t just keep the current regime in power.

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TIME: Charlotte Alter: Sex Buyers: Why Cops Across the U.S. Target Men Who Buy Prostitutes

Posted on August 20, 2015 by Derik Schneider
John

Source:TIME Magazine– Under arrest for paying for sex 

Source:The New Democrat

I guess what Cook County, Illinois is doing by arresting johns, that is men who pay prostitutes for sex, is better than arresting both johns and the prostitutes. And getting the prostitutes off the streets and giving them opportunities to improve their lives by getting out of prostitution and staying out of jail. The problem, is you’re still arresting johns. And for what, paying women for doing their job. Which is to give johns a good time and even sex. You’re arresting john for participating in a consensual act. And even if the consensual act is dangerous, its still consensual. Between two parties.

Illegal and criminal, are two different things at least to me. Doing something illegal means you’re breaking the law. You ran a red light, parked in a handicapped zone, failed to signal a turn and there are many other examples. But criminal, is when you intentionally hurt someone and do something that is not only illegal, but its criminal. You stole someone’s money, you beat an innocent person up, you raped someone, you murdered someone and you can go down the line. Good reasons why these acts are not just illegal, but criminal as well.

Prostitution, of course is illegal in most places and always has, but we’re talking about something where two agreeing parties agreed to do this with each other. And where the prostitute makes money from this simply by doing her job. And I understand everything about the dangers that come with the prostitution business is, which is exactly what it is a business. But you can say that about a lot other business’s that are legal in many places. Pro sports, gambling, private detective work, bounty hunting, stunt work and even acting. And yet these business’s are made as safe as they possibly can legal and otherwise through regulation. These industries actually regulate themselves.

Is prostitution the sole reason why we have two-million people in the criminal justice system in America as offenders? Of course not, but a big reason why we have so many convicted offenders in our system is because we arrest and lock people up who haven’t hurt anyone. In many cases these offenders are in jail, or prison for committing acts that are technically illegal and dangerous. Prostitution, is obviously one of those business’s. It’s not the oldest profession in the world for nothing. So the question is how best to deal with that. Locking people up for it has not worked. So the question for me at least are what are the alternatives. And I go to regulation and taxation to make a business that is not going anywhere as safe as possible.
Cook County Sheriff: Moran Than 100 Johns Cited Under New County Ordinance

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The Washington Post: Jennifer Rubin: John Kasich is The un-Trump

Posted on August 20, 2015 by Rik Schneider
Governor John Kasich Ohio

Governor John Kasich Ohio

Source:The New Democrat 

Just to be clear, I wouldn’t vote for John Kasich for president perhaps on any circumstances. Unless there was some reason why only Republicans were running for president. But what I’ve seen from him so far looks like he’s the best the Republican Party has and is someone who they desperately need if they’re going to win Latinos back and win back the White House. The Republican Party, won’t win the White House back until they win Latinos, Asians, Jews and get closer to Democrats when it comes to women. They’re Anglo-Saxon Southern-Protestant rural base is dying off and they know that.

Governor Scott Walker, simply too far-right on social issues. Constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage, allowing for employers and other groups to deny gays access simply because they’re gay, no abortion under any circumstances, he’s flipped on immigration and is no longer in favor of a policy to deal with the 10-15 million illegal immigrants other than perhaps sending them home. So he’s basically the Rick Santorum of 2016 and would have a hard time winning outside of the Bible Belt and would have a hard time even winning his home state.

Donald Trump, is nothing more than a one man reality show and if he still looks like a contender and December, I’ll consider apologizing. Jeb Bush, doesn’t want to be his brother, or father and yet its hard to tell how he differs from G.W. at least on economic policy. He now says the Iraq War was a mistake, but blind people could see that. He doesn’t seem to know what he wants to be right now other than what he was in Florida as Governor. But not a lot of people know what kind of Governor he was. He might end up being a weaker frontrunner than Mitt Romney.

Marco Rubio, the younger Jeb Bush? He’s G.W. and Dick Cheney when it comes to foreign policy and national security. He hasn’t come out with much of an economic policy yet. On immigration, Senator Rubio, Governor Bush and Governor Kasich, are where the party needs to be to win back Latinos and probably Asians as well. But all three men are going to have to do better than that and offer a vision to win those groups back. But Kasich, is a little different. Blue-collar guy from Pennsylvania and Ohio. Nine-term U.S. Representative and two-term Governor of Ohio which is a swing state. One of the lead authors in Congress of the 1997 Balanced Budget Act.

John Kasich, has real Washington experience and real experience outside of Washington. As well as private sector experience that he had after he left Congress in 2001. He’s not a fan of same-sex marriage, but wouldn’t do anything to stop it and has said he’s even been to a gay wedding. This all coming from a center-right Republican. Republicans, have to win Ohio back, as well as breakthrough the Democratic lock on Asians and Latinos. They also need to win back blue-collar voters regardless of race, or ethnicity. Kasich, might be the only Republican who can do that. And if I’m Hillary Clinton, or Jeb Bush, Kasich would be the person I would be most concern about.

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